WPRI Poll Coming

Rhode Island's pundit class may have been flying blind in the run-up to the primaries, with little in the way of public polls to digest. But the general election has brought a quick spurt of polls. Next up: a WPRI survey, with results released in part tonight, on the 6 p.m. news, and in part tomorrow. Tonight, we'll see numbers on the governor's race and issue like the 38 Studios deal and the Deepwater offshore wind farm.

An exclusive WPRI 12 poll set for release tonight shows the Deepwater project is popular with Rhode Islanders, with 56 percent of likely voters saying they would be willing to pay an additional $1.35 to $3 per month for electricity to support it. Only 32 percent opposed doing so, and 12 percent were not sure.

Despite a number of changes made in recent years, our exclusive WPRI 12 poll shows Rhode Islanders still don't think lawmakers have gone far enough in overhauling the state's public pension system.

The poll found 64 percent of likely voters think the General Assembly should make more changes to the pension system to reduce benefits and cut costs. Only 23 percent believe enough has been done and 13 percent are not sure.

That would seem to bode well for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Frank Caprio, who has made pension reform a signature issue.

On Thursday, the TV station will release numbers on the Congressional races. The results will be particularly important for Republican John J. Loughlin II, who is trying to build a sense of momentum around his long-odds battle against Democrat David Cicilline for the Congressional seat soon to be vacated by Patrick Kennedy.

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report has recently given Loughlin a better chance to pull off the upset, moving the race from its "likely Democratic" to "lean Democratic" category. Says here the move is a bit premature. But we'll see what the poll shows.